the final statement must be full of human experience and expression" - Jim Blackley
Jazz Drumming Blog
December 1st, 2017
Idea #36: Inverted 9 Stroke Rolls
These are some developments of an inverted 9 stroke roll idea that I picked up from Mike Johnston's Instagram (click here to see the original). I've included the original idea, but I was interested in exploring it in a triplet jazz feel. I came up with several ways to playing it between the hands, then between the snare and bass drum as a comping figure. You could also explore shifting the placement within the bar. Get the pdf for all the exercises.
- Click here to download the idea as a pdf.
Basics #5: Beat Placements
The idea of using beat placements as a way to practice just about any rhythmic figure was taught to me by Trevor Tomkins while I was at Guildhall, but you can find something similar in Benny Greb's material, and Jim Blackley makes use of a similar idea especially with accents, in Syncopated Rolls.
The idea is both simple and complex, so I've included the master sheet and then an example so you can see how it works. Take any rhythmic comping idea and practice putting it in different places in the bar while playing jazz time. It is a very systematic approach and covers all the possibilities. Each bar should be practiced many times over before moving to the next one. Once you are comfortable with this start mixing the bars/placements to create comping patterns and try with other figures such as those from basics #4 and basics #2. This will build your comping vocabulary.
August 16th, 2017
Basics #4: Triplet Comping
One of the quintessential elements of jazz drumming is triplet comping, something used heavily by people like Elvin Jones. This usually means filling in the remaining triplets between each quarter note with the snare drum and/or bass drum. The worksheet shows you how to count each beat, "1-trip-let" "2-trip-let", how the notes line up in the different parts, and where to place the comping note. Work on this slowly, while counting a loud and make sure it is led by the cymbal. These figures should sit lightly below the cymbal line and give it some forward momentum. Don't drown the cymbal in loud comping patterns! Listen to Coltrane Plays the Blues for some Elvin examples of these patterns, and more, in use.
- Click here to download as a pdf.
Idea #35: Mixed Grouping Fills
Here you'll find a collection of exercises for fills or licks incorporating the bass drum wth the hands. What I hope you find interesting is the 16th-note groupings - a group of 4, then two groups of 6 - which sound pretty hip. a. is the basic figure; b. is a voicing around the kit; c. is the figure reversed. In the pdf you'll find an exercise with a single kick, and the third exercise shifts between triplets and 16ths - two beats of each. There are plenty of ways to go with this from here. Find your own voicings, then try changing the order - 6/4/6. We can explore some odd note groupings another time.
- Click here to download the idea as a pdf.
- Previous Posts
Idea #34: Triplet Hand Co-ordination
Idea #33: 7 beat comping ideas
Basics #3/Idea #32: Triplet Flow
Idea #31: 5 over 4 Paradiddles
Idea #29: Hand to Foot Control
Basics #2: Beginning Jazz Comping
Idea #27: Rolls at different tempos
Idea #25.3: The Other - Extensions
Idea #25.2: The Other - Phrases and Unisons
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